MILLIONS of Britons are being ripped off by “daylight robbery” pension fees.

People who have saved for years are finding their retirement income slashed by the charges.

Some management fees are as high as three per cent a year.

Nearly half of all funds charge fees of more than one per cent.

Even one per cent can reduce a ­typical ­savings pot by more than a fifth, from £440,135 to £346,670.

Meanwhile, those who try to escape high-cost schemes can face exit ­penalties as high as 10 per cent.

Campaigner Gina Miller said: “This is daylight robbery.

"When we know who is burgling our homes, we send in the police and bring the ­robbers to trial.

"We know who is ripping off hard-working savers, so we need official investigations, ­Treasury inquiries and convictions for mis-­selling.”

Ms Miller is the founder of the True and Fair campaign for fees reform.

Between £23.2billion and £25.8billion of pension “assets under management” – out of a total of £67.5billion that was audited – were exposed to charges of more than one per cent, according to an investigation by the industry’s Independent Project Board.

Of schemes begun prior to 2001, between £5.6billion and £8billion went into funds incurring charges above two per cent, with around £900million incurring fees above three per cent.

Meanwhile, the rip-offs continue.

The IPB estimates that around 407,000 savers who have joined schemes in the past three years could also be exposed to a charge of over one per cent in the future.

We know who is ripping off hard-working savers, so we need official investigations

Gina Miller

Of these, 178,000 face charges over two per cent and 22,000 over three per cent.

Savers are being hit by 38 different types of fee, the investigation found.

Pensions expert Dr Ros Altmann, who advises the Government on older workers, said: “The regulator is still not stopping rip-off pension fees.

“From a customer perspective it is hard to see how these charges are fair.